Paul Cunningham

Parish Councillors

• Philippa Carter
• Sandy Timms
• Peter Rance
• Brian Leach
• Pauline Plant

Parish Clerk

• Angela Barnes

Members of the Public

• Mr Simon Gidman

1. Election of a Chairman and Vice Chairman

Cllr Timms proposed the election of Cllr Carter as Chairman, this was seconded by Cllr Rance. Cllr Carter proposed the election of Cllr Timms as Vice Chairman, this was seconded by Cllr Rance. Cllr Carter welcomed Cllr Pauline Plant as the newly co-opted fifth parish councillor.

2. Apologies

CCllr Liz Leffman
DCllr Jake Acock.

The Clerk was asked to ensure that copies of the Agenda, Monthly Update and the draft Minutes were sent to both the CCllr and DCllr.

3. Minutes of the Last Meeting

The Minutes recorded from the meeting held on Monday 8 April 2019 were approved as a true record, duly signed, dated and filed.

4. Declarations of interest

Cllr Carter declared an interest in AMET and would not take part in any discussions. Cllr Plant declared an interest in Tiddy Hall and would not take part in any discussions.

5. Financial Report

Stuart Fox, the Responsible Financial Officer had prepared the monthly parish funds spreadsheet, which had been circulated. Total bank balances £71,953.36

Income:

12th April
Pavilion rent -2 years £10.00
WODC Precept £11,291.00
16th April
HMRC VAT refund £1260.36
30th April
OCC Grass cutting fee £527.75

Expenditure:

25th April
200039 OCC Library subsidy £282.79
200040 Patrick Edwards Tractor repairs £61.80
29th April
200041 Bannor Electrical various works £668.02
200042 P Carter soil for pound £58.96
200043 P Carter wine for Annual Parish Meeting £21.97
13 May 2019
200044 A Barnes (Printer Cartridges) £17.68

Stuart Fox, RFO presented the bank reconciliation to Cllr Timms for referencing/reconciling.

Internal Audit Report

This was carried out by Margaret Ismail on 19 April 2019;
Chq no 101129 for £20 to Cotswold Promotion Line is not recorded in the minutes

Chq no 200003 (Tonnes Away) cancelled and re-issued on Chq no 200009 is not clear in the minutes. Chq number should be changed accordingly

Chq no 2000018 for £552 to Nicholson not shown in minutes

Chq no 200008 for £125 to Tonnes Away is cancelled on bank statement but not crossed out on cheque stub.

Chq no 200022 to Tonnes Away for £81.60 is cancelled, but is shown as chq no 2000021 in cash book.

RV 4 The amount for £9.99 is shown on an email but does not include a receipt. Would recommend that a receipt should be provided.

RV27 £15 for ink cartridge, no receipt, email used as receipt.

PV33 for £125 has been cancelled and re-issued later. Cheque stub is not cancelled.

The Internal Audit report was discussed and the reasons for the items raised by the Internal Auditor and how these could be avoided in the future. The Report was agreed as a true record.

External Audit

Year End Accounts to 31 March 2019

RFO Stuart Fox presented the Year End Accounts to 31 March 2019 to the Councillors and the Clerk and after discussion it was agreed unanimously that these were a true record. Cllr Carter signed the Accounts as Chairman and Stuart Fox as RFO. A copy of the Accounts was given to the Clerk for filing with the Minutes in the Minute Record Book.

Annual Return

RFO Stuart Fox explained the change to parish councils with income and expenditure below £25k and he presented the Certificate of Exemption. Cllr Carter signed this, as Chairman. The Annual Return would be displayed on the Notice Boards and Website accordingly.

Accounting Statement

RFO Stuart Fox presented the Accounting Statement to the Councillors and the Clerk. This was read and all agreed. Cllr Carter signed this as Chairman.

Annual Governance Statement

RFO Stuart Fox presented this to the Councillors and the Clerk. The questions numbered 1 to 9 were asked and all answered yes. The Annual Governance Statement was then duly signed by the Clerk and Cllr Carter as Chairman.

Financial Regulations

The Clerk has completed the amendments and circulated the amended Financial Regulations for approval and adoption at the June meeting.

6. Planning

Application No: 19/00925/HHD Erection of single storey rear extension and front porch 4 Chestnut Drive, Ascott-under-Wychwood – Mr Graham Ranson – NEW

7. Matters Arising

(a) Gigaclear

On 1 May Cllr Carter held a site meeting with Karl Whittaker, Delivery Manager of Gigaclear. They discussed good working practices and Mr Whittaker took many photographs of snagging issues to report to Lite Access. Dates for the area around the Green and Shipton Rd were discussed especially with regard to vehicle access and parking for the school and pre-school. Dates were subsequently agreed with all relevant parties to try and reduce inconvenience as much as possible. Unfortunately the date to work in the Tiddy Hall area had to be changed at the last minute. It will be on a weekend to avoid problems for the Pre-school and also for any large vehicles trying to pass through that narrow stretch of the road. The date around the school and Green should coincide with the May half-term.

(b) OCC Grasscutting Contract – Ongoing

(c) Footpaths – Cllr Plant agreed to take the lead in Footpath Deregulation. Cllr Carter to hand over the paperwork and explain progress so far.

(d) Ascott Martyrs Educational Trust (AMET) – Cllr Timms agreed to liaise and agree what fittings can be used for the panels on the Martyr Seats.

(e) Dropped kerbs – Dawls Close – Ongoing

(f) Public access to meetings
The Clerk reported on the advice given by OALC. The Councillors were asked to give this some thought and make a decision at the June meeting.

(g) Tiddy Hall, request for a grant towards renovating the toilets – Cllr Carter advised Parish Councillors that in recent years, when the PC has offered a grant, it has been about 10% of the project cost. This was, however, only a guide. Before deciding, the Clerk was asked to find out if S137 monies would have to be used as this would limit the monies available to grant. Cllr Carter suggested that P Councillors consider an amount up to 10% of the total cost, depending on how successful the Tiddy Trustees are in obtaining other grants. A decision would be made at the June PC meeting.

(h) Standing Orders – These were reviewed and all points in Paragraph 2k were discussed and agreed where applicable.

(i) Email from Mr Mitchell asking about the roadworks on the Shipton Road. A reply was drafted and the Clerk was asked to send.

8. Risk Assessment & Ground Maintenance

• Cllrs Carter and Plant walked the Village Grounds and adjusted the Risk Assessment accordingly. Cllr Carter presented the May 2019 RA and the list of outstanding works to the Parish Council for approval. Contacts have been made with contractors and suppliers for work on the playing field roadway and parking and also the play equipment
• Cllr Timms will take responsibility for the new Pound sign
• Cllr Leach for strimming in front of verge signs and behind the Pavilion
• Cllr Carter for Notice Boards, Playground and Playing Field parking spaces, staining barrow boards and seats in the Pound
• Cllr Plant has offered to help with keeping the Martyrs Seats clean and has liaised with other residents of the Green
• The Sports Committee will take on small works and maintenance to the pavilion and patio
• The football players will renovate the senior goals

9. Community Emergency Plan

Cllr Carter asked the Clerk to reply and book her a place on the WODC Emergency Planning, to be held on 13 June 2019.

10. Transport

Buses

The revised WOCT timetable is now operating and copies are on noticeboards, at bus stops and loose leaflet copies available in Ascott Village Shop.

Trains

Cllr Rance attended the Cotswold Line Promotion Group (CLPG) AGM in Morton in Marsh on Saturday 11th May. The electronic doors on the new IET trains are due for reprogramming by 21st May to allow full line usage of the extended platforms, eg Charlbury. He has sought further detailed information from the Chairman of CLPG regarding the Cotswold Line Task Force report recommending re-duelling of the line to Hanborough with a better service there, but impacting upon the existing Charlbury service. Meanwhile whilst yet to finalised, the December 2019 new timetable is expected to radically improve line services, though sadly without any additional services for Ascott.

13 Roads

Chipping Norton River Bridge – Cllr Rance reported that the invoice was to be raised – £500 for the consultation and a further £500 for the signing and lining. The works order was issued about a month ago but we need to coordinate the signing and lining to be implemented at the same time.

14 Reports from Organisations

(a) Ascott-under-Wychwood Sports Club
The Pre-School Fun Day is on 15 June. The kitchen plastering will start on 3 June. The last official senior football match of the season is on 18 May. The junior nets have been vandalised and will need replacing.

(b) Wychwood Library – Nothing to report.

(c) Helpers of Ascott-under-Wychwood – Nothing to report.

15 Correspondence

Email

OALC Monthly Update for April
OALC advert for a Town Clerk at Chipping Norton Town Council
Email from AMET + 10 attachments
Email from Tiddy Hall re refurbishment of Toilets (please refer to Item 9)
Email from Allan Ross re Village Shop – forwarded to Nick Leadbetter
Email from Mark Abrey apologising for not attending the Annual Meeting
Email from Mr Mitchell re roadworks on Shipton Road – refer to Item No. 7

Matters Arising
Post
Clerk & Council Direct

16 Any Other Business

Cllr Plant raised the issue of a ‘footprint sized’ hole which has appeared in the pavement outside No 32 Shipton Rd. Cllr Carter to raise this with Gigaclear.

Cllr Carter informed the P Council that 5 fire engines had attended the bonfire at Crown Farm. She had been copied into emails sent to WODC Environment Health Dept by various residents who had reported the incident in detail. Police had also attended and warned residents to close their windows. They and the Fire Chief returned to the village the next day to conduct interviews.

Cllr Carter reported that a resident had asked if she could maintain the footpath between Heritage Lane and the Orchard. Cllr Carter explained to the resident that it was not the responsibility of the Parish Council to maintain public footpaths. OCC is responsible for ensuring that a public footpath is clear through its Rights of Way Dept. Sometimes an OCC team will clear the way but mostly the RoW Dept will expect the home or landowners who own the adjoining properties to do the work. Contact details of the OCC Rights of Way Dept are on their website. Cllr Leach was kind enough to clear the footpath earlier in the year but this was purely voluntary and not part of his PC duties. The same applies to the gardening that Cllr Carter and other volunteers undertake at the station.

Grapevine and PC phone numbers – it was decided that the best phone number for residents to use would be the Clerk’s and this will be regularly added to the end of each PC Grapevine article along with email addresses.

There being no further business, Cllr Carter declared the meeting closed at 10.00pm

Cllr Philippa Carter (Chairman)
Date: Monday 10 June 2019